Sheerr Pool lane distances

July 22, 2009 11:55 AM

How long is each segment of Sheerr Pool at the University of Pennsylvania?

I've been swimming at Sheerr Pool at Penn for the last few weeks, and I'm a little confused about the distances. The pool is a 50-meter pool with a bulkhead in the middle separating each lane into two shorter lanes of a little less than half that distance. The pool website describes the pool as a "50 meter competitive pool with bulkhead for separate aquatic activity spaces, including a 25 yard instructional pool with ramp and stair entrance."

So one side is probably 25 yards, but what about the other? They can't both be 25 yards, because the bulkhead is only a few feet wide, but it would have to be about 4.7 yards wide to make up the distance between 50 meters and 50 yards. So is one side 25 yards and the other 25 meters? If so, which is which?

(I asked the lifeguard today, but he didn't know).

posted by ootsocsid to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (9 answers total)

Best answer: I thought one was 25 yards (on the right) and one was 25 meters (on the left).
posted by Pax at 12:03 PM on July 22, 2009

I don't know about Sheer in particular, but pools I've been in with movable bulkheads are usually longer to accommodate them, so if the bulkhead is 4 feet and if you'll excuse me going all NASA and mixing my measurement systems, then the 50 meter pool would actually be 50 meters and 4 feet. So it could be split into two 25 meter pools, or it could be moved 45 feet to accommodate water polo, etc.
posted by IanMorr at 1:15 PM on July 22, 2009

The 25 yards would be width in those pools by the way, so if you're swimming length to the bulkhead you'll be doing 25 meters, if you're swimming across you're doing 25 yards.
posted by IanMorr at 1:23 PM on July 22, 2009

It's 25 yards and 25 meters, and as far as I can remember (it's been a year or two), the meter side is to the right when entering the pool from the locker room. IIRC, that's the deep end.
posted by The Michael The at 1:26 PM on July 22, 2009

That is, the deep end is 25 meters long, the bulkhead is 2.14 meters wide, and the shallow end is 25 yards long.
posted by The Michael The at 1:28 PM on July 22, 2009

Wait, how does that make sense? The pool needs to be 50m WITH the bulkhead in, unless they remove it every time they swim long course. So divided in half, shouldn't it be 25m & 25m, with yards across?
posted by dame at 5:10 PM on July 22, 2009

The bulkhead's in the middle, dividing into 25m and 25y sections. It's removable (submersible?) and when it's away, the whole pool is 50m across. I can go and take pictures if you want proof.
posted by The Michael The at 5:26 PM on July 22, 2009

If the bulkhead separates the pool into lengths of 25 meters and 25 yards (measuring along the lanes), and the pool has a length of 50 meters, then we can calculate:

25y + 25m + x = 50m
22.86m + 25m + x = 50m
47.86m + x = 50m
x = 2.14m ~= 2.34y ~= 6'4"

Here's a photo of the pool. The bulkhead looks about the right size.
posted by clorox at 3:59 AM on July 23, 2009

Response by poster: I asked the lifeguard yesterday: the deep end (right side when you enter the pool area) is 25 yards and the shallow end (left side when you enter the pool area) is 25 meters.
posted by ootsocsid at 8:06 AM on July 31, 2009